


The DiNozzo Food Gene

by Calico_Cat_TIVA_Fan



Category: NCIS
Genre: Family Fluff, Family fun, Food, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-10
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:48:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 8,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27485290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Calico_Cat_TIVA_Fan/pseuds/Calico_Cat_TIVA_Fan
Summary: A collection of short one-shots about the DiNozzo clan and food. Part of the "You Complete Me" universe.
Relationships: Ziva David/Anthony DiNozzo
Comments: 13
Kudos: 27





	1. LJ and the Lasagna

The DiNozzo Food Gene

_Collection of short one-shots about the DiNozzo clan and food._

Chapter 1 – LJ and the Lasagna

Fifteen-month-old LJ grinned at his Abba. Both cheeks were splotched with bright red tomato sauce from the lasagna meal. On closer inspection, Tony could see tomato sauce in the child's hair, ears, and nose, as well as on his hands and arms. The kid wore his food proudly.

"It is _your_ turn for his bath tonight," Ziva smirked at her husband.

He stuck out his tongue at her, "Why do I always get stuck with the messy nights? I had the last one and the one before that and…"

Ziva patted his arm and grinned, "And the diaper blow-out last week… I am sorry."

"No, you're not," Tony grimaced as he lifted the lasagna-covered little boy from his highchair. "Jeez, he's even got pasta between his toes. Bath time, big boy." He held LJ at arm's length to avoid becoming a second pasta and sauce covered DiNozzo and carried the toddler to the bathroom.

Tony set LJ on the bathmat and stripped off the boy's clothing and diaper after starting the tap to fill the bathtub. "Holy crap, Ziva! How in the name of heck did he manage to get tomato sauce between his butt cheeks?"

Ziva appeared in the bathroom doorway from the twins' room, "You bellowed?"

Tony held up LJ and bent him over his arm, showing the baby's buttocks to his Ima, "He's got tomato sauce in his butt crack!"

"Well, he _is_ a DiNozzo. Enough said!" Ziva grinned at her boys.

LJ giggled and squirmed thinking his Abba was playing "airplane" again. Tony "flew" the baby to the bath and set him down. The father quickly shed his own shirt figuring that he would get soaked in the process of removing _ALL_ of the food from his baby. LJ grabbed the bag of tub toys and splashed the boats and plastic animals in the water.

Tony grabbed a washcloth and the cup they used for rinsing head and neck; he made sure all of LJ was wet down and began scrubbing. Twenty minutes later, he was finally satisfied that all food was gone from the baby's body and head. He helped LJ stand for the final rinse with the moveable shower head. LJ had one of the boats in his hand and as his father adjusted the temperature on the shower stream, the boy dumped the water from the boat over his Abba's head.

"WHA?" Tony yelled out as LJ laughed. "You little devil," he grinned at the child. " _That_ is the David side in you, but don't tell Ima I said that."


	2. Rivka and the Radish

Chapter 2 – Rivka and the Radish

Three-year-old Rivka carried her pile of folded clothes through the kitchen from the laundry room. She spotted some bright red orbs sitting on the cutting board. They looked like candies. She ran to her room to put her clothes away quickly so that she could return to the kitchen.

Once back in the kitchen, the little girl listened for her Ima and siblings. As best she could tell, LJ was still taking a nap in his room. She heard Ima and Beth talking in the laundry room. The coast was clear; she grabbed two of the bright red orbs from the counter and ran to the playroom popping one in her mouth as soon as she got to the playroom.

"What are you doing, Riv?" her twin came from the hallway to the bedrooms.

"Nufin," the older twin replied with her mouth full.

"What are you eating?" Beth was persistent; she wanted whatever her sister had.

"Nufin," Riv crunched the object in her mouth and immediately regretted it. Within seconds her mouth felt as though it was on fire and her eyes started tearing up. She handed the other red orb to her sister but was unable to warn her twin in time to stop her from popping it into her mouth.

"Augh," Riv ran towards the hall bath trying not to spit out the contents of her mouth onto the floor but it burned so much she couldn't help but dribble some of the bits of the food out onto the carpet. She spit most of it into the trash can in the bathroom. "Bleh," she emptied her mouth and ran the water in the sink to fill a disposable cup.

Once the cup filled the little girl emptied it in one swallow; it helped with the burning sensation in her mouth some. She filled it a second time as her sister came running into the bathroom holding her hands over her mouth. Riv moved aside as Beth expelled everything into the toilet.

Beth spied the cup of water her sister had and filled a cup for herself. That food was nasty; it burned the inside of her mouth and made her nose and eyes run. Whatever her twin had found was not anything either of them wanted to eat again.

"Yucky!" Riv pointed to the discarded food in the trash. "Not candy."

"Nope; it was nasty. I won't eat that ever again!" her twin echoed the sentiment.

Ziva passed the bathroom door as she carried LJ's pile of clothes to his room. She heard water running and the two girls talking and poked her head into the bathroom, "What are you doing?"

"Nothing, Ima," they replied together.

"That does not sound or look like nothing," she pointed to the running water and the pile of tissues on the floor. "What did you do?" she gave the twins her best 'Ima glare.'

"Riv stoled some candy but it was really nasty," Beth blurted out. "My mouth is burning. I spit mine out." She pointed to the toilet and then the trash bin, "Riv spitted hers out too."

Ziva looked at the offensive food, "And where did you find this _candy_ Rivka Abigail DiNozzo?"

Uh oh, Ima used the full name; she was in trouble. Riv confessed, "In the kitchen Ima. On the cutting board by the sink. I'm sorry Ima. Time out?" She looked down at the floor with her lower lip trembling; a tear slipped from each eye.

Ziva lifted her daughter's chin to make eye contact, "What have we said about taking food without asking? Especially when you think it is candy?"

"It's wrong," the girl cried. "I'm sorry Ima…"

"What you took is called a radish. It is a spicy food that some people like and others do not. If you had asked to try the radish, I would have let you have a small slice to try it. And, I would have told you that it is spicy so you would have been prepared. I am guessing that you did not like what you tasted, yes?"

Both girls shook their heads, "Nope. It was yucky!"

"I hope that you will remember the radish the next time you think about taking food without asking," Ziva looked at the two sternly. "Five minutes of time out for Rivka, and three minutes for Beth. We will start after I get your brother's clothes put away. Meet me in the kitchen."

Later that night as they were getting ready for bed, Ziva related the incident to Tony, "I hope this teaches them the lesson we have been trying to get through to them."

Tony grinned, "Wish we'd _thought_ of using radishes…"


	3. Anthony and the Cookies

Chapter 3 – Anthony and the Cookies

Ziva handed her son the plastic bag from the superstore with his large bag of chocolate animal crackers for the class's celebration of the science unit on all things animal. "Remember to put this in the box by the classroom door on your way into class," she reminded the seven-year-old.

"Okay, Ima," he replied with a grin. When he and Abba came up with the idea to buy animal crackers, he'd been excited. Most of the other kids were bringing food that animals ate, such as carrots or lettuce. Anthony thought his choice of snack would be one of the most popular with the other children in his class.

He and Ima had found a list of the different animals in the bag and with what Doda Nettie had taught Tali and him, he'd made a list of which animals were kosher and which were non-kosher meat. Abba helped him prepare a small poster about the animals as food and what it meant for meat to be kosher. The poster fit in his backpack and folded with one side having pictures of the kosher meat and the other side the non-kosher meat. They'd added pictures of the kosher fowl and fish as well.

Of the thirteen different animal shapes in the bag, only three – the buffalo, the cow, and the goat – were kosher. The bear, camel, cat, donkey, elephant, hippo, horse, lion, rhino, and tiger were not. And Anthony could tell anyone why. Only the kosher animals had cloven or split hooves and chewed the cud. Kosher fish had fins and scales. The hard one was the kosher fowl; Doda Nettie had shown the children the list she learned as a child: domesticated chickens, Cornish hens, ducks, geese, and turkeys. There were other acceptable fowl depending on which denomination of Judaism was followed. While the DiNozzo family did not follow the strict Orthodox rules for kosher foods, they did go kosher for Passover every year, especially eliminating chametz (leavened food.)

Ziva watched her son disappear through the doors to the school by the car-rider's drop-off. Tali had her flute and band folder with her that day, so Ziva had dropped off the two kids instead of them riding the bus. Tony was at home with the other three since the day was one of her on-campus lab days for her biology and physical science classes.

Anthony entered his classroom and set his backpack and the bag of animal crackers on his desk. It was his day to feed the classroom goldfish, gerbils, and finches. He liked the birds the best even though he knew that any of the classroom pets would become cat toys or worse at his house. Because of the pets at home, he couldn't be a weekend pet sitter, so he volunteered to be a classroom feeder and cage cleaner for four days each month.

As he spread the fish flakes on the top of the goldfish tank, he wondered if the goldfish were a kosher food. They had fins and scales, so he figured they would be. The gerbils were definitely not kosher; he put their seeds and kibble in the bowls and gave each of the three some head rubs. The finches got excited when he put the cup of seeds in their cage. He ran a finger over each head as the two birds perched on the seed container. From what he remembered, Doda Nettie would not consider the finches a kosher meat, but some others would. He would try to mention that when he gave his report with the poster about kosher meats.

The morning bell rang as the boy returned to his desk. He noticed the bag of cookies and slid it into his desk; when they had morning break, he would place it in the box of snacks for the party. The class said the Pledge of Allegiance and listened to the morning announcements and then got to work on the daily math problems. Anthony liked math and often finished his work before the others. He could read his library book or work on another assignment while the other kids finished their work.

He put his completed math paper in the correct folder for grading and returned to his desk. He reached inside to get his library book and his hand hit the bag of animal crackers. The boy's stomach rumbled softly; he was hungry already. He looked over at the clock; lunch time was still at least two hours away. He used his scissors to cut off a corner and took a small pile of the cookies out of the bag and placed them where he could reach into the desk to eat the animal crackers one at a time.

When the class started the science lesson, and then the test about animals, Anthony slid his library book into his desk. He munched some more of the animal crackers as he completed the worksheet about animals and their habits. He smiled at the pictures of the birds eating seeds and the cows eating grass. He put the completed worksheet in the folder for grading and took his test paper from the teacher's desk.

More animal crackers fueled his exam work; he started noticing which animal shapes he ate and decided that the non-kosher shapes should be eaten first. That way his classmates could have just kosher animals for their party food. Anthony submitted his test paper to the correct folder and glanced at the clock. With twenty-five minutes left until lunch time, he had more time to read his library book.

When the teacher let the class know it was time for lunch, Anthony grabbed a handful of the animal crackers when he put his library book back in the desk. He shoved them in his pocket to have after the school meal. He was excited when he saw the trays being handed to the kids in the line; today was chicken nuggets, waffle fries, carrot and celery sticks with ranch dip, and chocolate milk option. Several of his class friends never ate their carrots and celery so he always wound up with extra veggies and dip. He would save the animal crackers in his pocket for outside recess after lunch.

Back inside after lunch and recess, the teacher announced the weekly spelling test as the students settled into their seats. Anthony reached in his desk for a pencil and another handful of chocolate animal crackers; the ones in his pocket were long gone after playing on the climbers with his friends. He popped a cookie in his mouth as the teacher called out the first spelling word: "Cookie." Anthony grinned and wrote the word on his paper.

When the spelling words were completed, Mrs. Miller reminded the students that they could earn bonus points by using a spelling word in a complete sentence. She also reminded them to underline the spelling word. Anthony's sentence had three spelling words: "I like to eat cookies, meat, and bread but not all at the same time."

After the children submitted the spelling tests, it was time for the party celebrating animals. Several others had made posters or pictures to present to the class as Anthony had. He was the third child to show his poster when they went alphabetically. He held up his poster about animals as food and explained the rules of kosher meats. Then he held up the bag of animal crackers.

"I brought animal crackers for our party," he started. Then he realized that he'd eaten about half of the contents of the bag! "I um… I ate some of them though… so um… the bag isn't full anymore," he grinned his best DiNozzo grin at his teacher, hoping he wasn't in too much trouble.

"Thank you, Anthony," Mrs. Miller smiled. "Please put the bag by the rest of the snacks for the class."

"Okay." He placed the bag by the other snacks and returned to his seat. He reached into his desk and ate the last of the cookies he'd kept while the others presented their posters or pictures. When time came for the children to fill their plates with the various treats, Anthony took some of everything there. He was one of the few who took samples of all the different vegetables and fruit the other kids brought. Several of his friends put their vegetables and fruit on his plate.

Any day when he could eat so many of his favorite foods was a great day in his mind and today had been one of those days. He shoveled the apple slices, carrot sticks, cookies, granola, popcorn, and other goodies into his mouth, washing it down with the cup of apple juice.


	4. Tali Tries Grits

Chapter 4 – Tali Tries Grits

Eight-year-old Tali eyed the white gloppy stuff in the bowl in front of her. She'd spent the night with Tori Palmer and Aunt Breena and Uncle Jimmy made a big breakfast for everyone. There were scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, toast, hash-browns, fruit slices, and the white stuff. Jimmy noticed the look the eldest DiNozzo was giving the bowl.

"That's grits, Tali," he explained. "Kinda like the consistency of oatmeal but made from ground hominy corn. Really not much taste by itself; grits tend to take on the taste of whatever you mix into them."

Tori spooned grits into a bowl, "I like the grits with bacon and sausage pieces. Daddy eats his with butter and salt." She showed her cousin how she crumbled the bacon and sausage to mix into her bowl of grits.

"Um… okay, I guess," Tali still wasn't sure. She watched as Charles dumped a large spoonful of the grits over his eggs and then put the bacon and sausage on top of the pile. The four-year-old was like her brother Anthony, though; he'd eat just about anything, so she wasn't too certain about his choice.

Aunt Breena spooned her grits into a bowl, "I like my grits sweet. I put the fruit slices on top and then sprinkle brown sugar, cinnamon, and granola on top of it all. Sometimes I also put cream in the mix. It's okay if you don't want to try them, Tali."

Tali nodded, "Okay; I'm not sure. Can I try the grits different ways? Maybe a little bit of each way you have all told me about?"

"Sure thing," Uncle Jimmy put a teaspoonful of his grits with butter and salt on the small dish by Tali's plate. Aunt Breena and Tori did the same. Charles grinned and let Tali take a forkful from his plate. She popped the food in her mouth, not bad with the eggs and meats mixed in.

Uncle Jimmy's mix with butter and salt was okay; Tali preferred the mix from Charles so far. Tori's mixture with the two meats was similar to the mix with the meats and the eggs. Then she tasted the sweet mix; oh my gosh… the grits, cream, sliced strawberries, blueberries and diced peaches mix was awesome.

"Aunt Breena, would you please tell my Ima how to make this?" Tali pointed to the grits bowl. "Especially to mix with the fruit, I really like grits that way!"

When Tony arrived to pick up his daughter an hour or so later, Breena remarked about the grits. "Tali tried grits at breakfast; she liked them with fruit and with bacon and sausage. Here's my recipe for Ziva since Tali asked for it. I'm really impressed that she tried a new food. My Tori is such a picky eater sometimes."

Tony took the recipe card, "It's that DiNozzo food gene!" He grinned as Tali came running into the room.

"Abba, have you ever had grits? They are really good!"


	5. Hot Dogs

Chapter 5 – Tony and the Boys at a Hot Dog Stand

"I'll take nine of the all-beef hotdogs, please," Tony placed his order with the young man at the hot dog stand. "All on the standard buns."

"If you buy one more, you get two free," the vendor commented. "One dozen total for the price of ten."

Anthony and LJ shared a look; they _were_ hungry from doing yard work with the volunteer group from NCIS. Abba had even mentioned that he too was starving.

"Go for it, Abba," fourteen-year-old Anthony encouraged his father. "I bet I can eat half of them myself."

Ten-year-old LJ nodded his agreement, "Yeah, Abba, we can eat a dozen hot dogs after all the hard work we did."

"Okay, gimme a dozen of the all-beef dogs on regular buns," Tony grinned at his boys as each they gave him a thumbs' up. "If you could wrap them individually, that way we can keep them warm and if we end up taking any home, they are already wrapped to go."

"Any sides or beverages?"

"Three large soft drinks, please."

Tony handed a beverage cup to each of his sons and told them to find a table while he waited for their food order. The vendor handed him a bag with a dozen individually wrapped hot dogs.

"Thanks for your business; the condiment bar is by the beverage bar. Enjoy your dogs," the young man smiled as he handed over the bag. "Come back soon!"

Tony spotted the boys at a table not far from the condiments and beverages; he'd trained them well. He placed the bag on the table, "Let's add extras one at a time as we eat them; that way if we have any to take home, the buns won't get soggy."

"Got it, Abba," the boys chorused as each grabbed a wrapped hot dog from the bag. LJ added ketchup, mustard, and shredded cheese to his hot dog. Anthony's extras were similar, but he also added sliced pickles. Tony just shook his head as he created his "New York dog": sauerkraut, grilled onions, and spicy brown mustard. You could take the boy out of New York, but you couldn't take the New York out of the boy.

Thirty minutes later, the father watched as his boys finished their meal. He'd eaten two hot dogs, New York style of course. LJ had varied his toppings on the four hot dogs he inhaled, adding chili to two of them with the shredded cheese. Anthony, true to his word, ate six hot dogs. One would think the DiNozzo boys were growing or something!

As the three DiNozzos cleaned up their table, Anthony nudged his brother. He looked over at their father.

"Abba, I'm still hungry; how about we have some ice cream for dessert?"

"Please, Abba?" LJ gave his best puppy eyes; the ones his Abba could not say no. "We won't tell Ima."


	6. Ziva's Introduction to Clam Chowder

Chapter 6 – Ziva's Introduction to Clam Chowder

Ziva placed the wrapped Challah on the table in the Student Center study room; one of the others in her study group for the statistics class had brought a small crockpot of soup. She dropped her backpack by the second table and took out her textbook, notebook, laptop, and calculator along with a mechanical pencil. The upcoming exam promised to be the most difficult yet in the statistics course; although Ziva had a good handle on the material, several others in her study group were struggling with the probability distributions.

"Hi, Ziva!" Sandie placed a second crockpot of soup on the food table. "Perfect day for soup with that blustery wind."

"Yes, it is. I brought home-baked Challah," Ziva gestured to the wrapped bread. "I sliced it at home to make serving easier."

Khalia entered the room from the short hallway that led to the various study rooms, "Hey ladies; I forgot the power cord for my crockpot, so I had to go back to my car. I think the temperature is dropping out there." She placed the cord on the table and unwound her scarf from her neck.

"Damn, it's cold out there!" Meg came through the door with the plastic bags filled with disposable plates and bowls, plastic cutlery, paper napkins, and her water bottle hanging from her arms. "I heard there's snow in the forecast…"

Ziva nodded, "My twins think the snow will mean that they will have a snow day from school for their birthday."

"How old are they now?" Sandie queried her friend from classes. She and Ziva had met in their second term at the college in a literature class. They'd been study partners since.

"They will be five years old on Thursday. It does not seem possible that time has flown by so quickly," Ziva reflected. "Tali will be eleven in June. It seems like it was just yesterday they were all babies."

"I don't know how you do it with five kids, Ziva. Jeff is eight and enough for me to keep up with," Meg added with a smile as she placed the food dishes and utensils on the table. "Anybody heard from Christa?"

"I got a text from her last night," Sandie replied. "She said her kids were still down with that flu and now her husband is sick as well. I don't think she'll be here today."

Ziva nodded, "I know that all too well. When one child gets ill, the others are not far behind. My big child is the worst one…"

"Let's eat and then study," Khalia suggested as she removed the lid from her crockpot. "I made Manhattan clam chowder. I hope you like it."

Sandie chuckled, "I made New England clam chowder! Did you get your clams on sale at Wegmans' supermarket?"

"Yep!"

Ziva waited until the others filled their bowls and plates with soup and bread. She eyed the two soups; Sandie and Meg chose the white New England chowder while Khalia chose the red Manhattan chowder. Both looked good to Ziva, even though she'd not had either one before. Clams are not kosher, but the DiNozzo family didn't keep kosher most of the year, only at Pesach.

"What is in these?" she asked the two women who made the soups.

"New England style chowder has clams, milk or cream, potatoes, onions, and celery," Sandie informed her friend. "I add turkey bacon as well."

Khalia listed the ingredients for her chowder, "Manhattan style has tomatoes, clams, potatoes, onions, carrots, and some bacon."

Ziva took two bowls and put some of each chowder in a bowl. Both looked and smelled delicious. She sat with her friends and tried each soup.

"These are both excellent!" she declared.

All the others looked at Ziva.

"What?"

Meg spoke first, "Well, usually a person has a distinct preference for one or the other style."

"Or doesn't like either," Khalia added.

"Well, I like BOTH styles," Ziva smiled at her friends. "Is that unusual?"

"VERY!" the three others replied.

Sandie held up her phone, "I found a poll about clam chowder; about sixty-seven percent prefer white New England chowder; about twenty-five percent don't like either; about seven percent like Manhattan style red; and just one percent like both."

Ziva grinned as she held up her phone, "I am not alone; Tony just replied that he likes both types also! Must be that DiNozzo food gene!"


	7. Beth and Bologna Sandwiches

Chapter 7 – Beth and Bologna Sandwiches

Tony peeked into the playroom where the three younger DiNozzos were building with the Lego bricks. "Who's ready for lunch?" he asked the kids. "Bologna sandwiches today."

"I hungry, Abba," three-year-old LJ popped his head up from the tower he was building.

"Me," echoed the five-year-old twins Beth and Rivka.

"With 'merican cheese?" Riv asked.

"Yep, American cheese, bologna, and white bread," Tony nodded at his kids. "Who wants mayo?"

"YUCKY," LJ made a face. "Just b'loney and cheese."

Rivka shook her head, "Mustard for me please. No mayo."

Only Beth nodded, "Mayo for me, please, Abba." She grinned at her father, "And _two_ slices of bologna! And chips too!"

"Got it; go wash hands while I make the sandwiches," Tony turned to head to the kitchen. He placed eight slices of bread on the counter and then put slices of the lunch meat on top of four of them. He placed a slice of American cheese on top of the meat. Finally, he spread the one of the other slices of bread with mayonnaise; two with mustard and left one plain, flipping each sandwich closed as he went.

"Come and get lunch," he called out as he placed the plated sandwiches on the kitchen breakfast nook table. He grabbed a bag of chips from the pantry and juice boxes for the kids and a bottle of water for himself from the refrigerator as the three preschoolers climbed into their chairs around the table.

LJ and Rivka each started eating their sandwiches, but Beth just sat and glared at hers. She crossed her arms and sighed loudly.

"Something wrong, mini-Ninja?" her father inquired. "I thought you liked bologna and mayo."

"I do, but you made it wrong," the little girl replied. "And you didn't cut it like Ima does."

"Oh; I put the two slices of bologna, American cheese, and mayo, just like you asked," Tony was puzzled. "And since Ima is at class…"

"You did it _wrong_!"

Tony sighed, "So I guess you aren't gonna eat that sandwich?"

"Nope. Not unless you fix it," the child looked at her Abba with puppy eyes.

Meanwhile, LJ and Rivka finished their sandwiches and Tony gave each of them a handful of potato chips. LJ eyed his sister's sandwich hungrily; Tony noticed and handed the food to his little one.

"Toda, Abba," LJ bit into the sandwich that had been Beth's. Tony noticed that he didn't complain about the mayonnaise.

"Come with me and show me how to make it the way you want," Tony motioned for his number three Ninja to follow him to the counter. He placed two more slices of bread on the counter and reached into the fridge for the meat and cheese.

"Wait; put mayo on _both_ slices of bread," Beth instructed. She watched her father spread the condiment on the bread slices. He peeled two slices of bologna from the stack. "One slice on each piece of bread," she added.

Tony followed his daughter's instructions for the mayo and meat; he removed a slice of cheese from the stack, "Which side for the cheese?"

"Either one, as long as it is _between_ the slices of meat. Wait, don't close it yet. You gotta put the potato chips on top of the cheese," Beth handed the bag to her father and watched as he layered chips over the cheese.

"Ready _now_?" Tony hadn't realized how picky his min-Ninja number three was with her food.

"Almost! Cut it into triangles like this," Beth moved her finger from one corner along the diagonal to the opposite side. "Thank you, Abba. You made it just the way I like it!" She took her plate to the table and happily scarfed up the food.

Tony made a mental note to self about the child's requirements for her bologna sandwich; something told him he'd need to remember for future meals.


	8. DiNozzo Specialties

Chapter 8 – DiNozzo Specialties 2025

"I present to you, ladies and gentlemen, the masterpiece… spaghetti a la DiNozzo," Tony placed the large pot of sauce (gravy if he was true to his family heritage and to keep Aunt Isabella from twisting his ear) on the table with a flourish. Two large bowls of pasta were already on the table with baskets of crusty garlic bread fresh from the oven.

Ziva rolled her eyes at Delilah and Tim chuckled; Tony never failed to entertain when he made spaghetti. He always made a big deal of his presentation to the family dinner table.

"So, Abba, when are you going to share the secret recipe?" Anthony quipped as he did occasionally when his father made the meal.

"When I am old enough to know better and young enough not to care," the elder DiNozzo retorted.

Tali turned to her Aunt Delilah, "In other words, _never_!" She turned to her father, "You know, Abba, if you never share your recipe with any of us, it won't be a family tradition any longer. We can't pass on what we don't have."

"Tali has a point," Ziva joked as she placed her hand over her husband's. "At some point you will _have_ to share your recipe with at least one of the children…"

John grinned at his Uncle Tony as he passed his plate for sauce over his pasta, "You could also share it with _me_!"

" _If_ and only if you are family, kid."

Tony ladled the sauce over pasta for each person, serving Ziva and then himself last. "What I will tell is some of the ingredients; pay attention, DiNozzos… You may very well get the entire secret recipe in bits and pieces over the years as I see fit."

"Do I need to write this down?" Tali questioned her Abba.

Tony flashed a DiNozzo grin at his daughter, "If you want… first you have to get fresh tomatoes. Romas are best; very few seeds and lots of pulp. You need spices, preferably fresh ones. And freshly ground beef; ground sirloin is best. Freshly made bulk Italian sausage without the casing adds some extra flavor. Beef broth, water, fresh garlic, onions, mushrooms, and ripe olives. That is all."

"Wait, Abba, how much of each?" Anthony really wanted to know more details as he watched Tali write the ingredients their father listed on a piece of paper.

"That, my boy, is for another time…" Tony flashed a mischievous grin at his son. "For now, eat and enjoy."

LJ passed his dish to his Abba, "I want more, please!"

"Me too!" Rivka, Beth, John, and Anthony all spoke together.

"Me three," Tim added with a smile. "And don't worry Tali, I got it all recorded on my phone for you to make sure you have all the ingredients. _Someone_ has to make sure we will be able to enjoy this when your dad is no longer with us."

Tony glared at his brother of the heart, "What if I outlive you, McKilljoy?"

Tim gulped, "Not likely, but…" Tony and Ziva both laughed at the 'deer in the headlights' look on his face.

"Tim will die of foot in mouth first!" Delilah joked to the laughs of the adults. "I'd like more also, please." She passed her plate to get more sauce and high-fived with Ziva.


	9. Movie Night Treats

Chapter 9 – Movie Night Treats – 2055

"Christmas cookies and hot chocolate for everyone; eggnog for the adults is on the counter by the microwave. Kids' version is on the table with the cookies," Tony brought the tray of steaming mugs of hot chocolate from the kitchen to the family room where three generations had gathered to continue the DiNozzo Christmas Eve tradition of watching _It's a Wonderful Life_.

"Saba," five-year-old Jackson tugged at his grandfather's shirt hem. "Why is there a kids' version of eggnog?"

Tony bent down to the little boy's level, "Because…" He paused dramatically for emphasis as his five adult children and several of the older grandchildren rolled their eyes, "Santa makes the kid version extra-special for good boys and girls."

"Oh. I've been good this year. Mama says so," the boy replied. "Jet was good too. Jessica was bad when she ate all the candy at Halloween."

"I didn't eat _all_ of the candy," his eight-year-old sister retorted. "Daddy tell Jackson to stop tattling. 'Specially when it is _not_ the whole truth."

LJ stepped in between his older two children, "How about instead of arguing, you _both_ tell Saba thank you for the hot chocolate and cookies?"

"Thank you, Saba," they chorused and ran off towards the table where Ziva was helping their cousins and little brother get some cookies. LJ looked over to his Abba.

"There are days when I swear that all those two want to do is get on each other's last nerve; how did you and Ima do it with five of us?"

Tony grinned at his youngest, "Seat of the pants winging it most of the time. Kids don't come with manuals unfortunately. One of the worst was when you five would argue over things like movie night treats or even the movies themselves. That's when Ima and I started the movie night rotation for picking movies and snacks."

Beth was nearby and overheard part of the conversation, "I always wondered why we did that. Makes sense though in retrospective. My favorite was root beer floats and popcorn for snack."

"Root beer floats and animal crackers!" Anthony added his favorite to the conversation. "The best was when Ima got all three kinds of animal crackers: plain, chocolate, and iced."

LJ shook his head, "Nope. The best movie night snacks were the waffle bowls or waffle cones with ice cream and sprinkles. We still do that at home with the kids."

"Whatcha talking about?" Rivka heard LJ's part of the conversation.

"Remembering our favorite movie night snacks," Anthony explained. "So far we all have different favorites."

"That's easy; root beer floats and soft pretzels!" his sister replied. "I really liked when Ima made her own soft pretzels; she gave me the recipe a few years back. My kids scarf them up like we did."

Ziva came over with a plate of cookies in hand. As she passed by, she joined the conversation, "Precisely why we switched to having one person choose which movies we watched, and one person choose the snacks for each movie night. If not, there was either a big argument over the two or we had all sorts of food out for one snack."

LJ turned to his mother, "So what was your favorite, Ima?"

Before Ziva could answer, Tali chimed in with her favorite. She'd been listening to the entire conversation from the sofa. "Mine was the time we made mocktails and hors d'oeuvres. We only did that one time, but it was a lot of fun. Lots of good memories too."

"I forgot about that one," Beth mused. "We need to ask Abba too."

Ziva nodded, "Yes, Tony, what is _your_ favorite movie night snack?"

"You didn't answer, Ziva; what is yours?" he smirked at her, suspecting her answer would be akin to his own. He really didn't have much of a preference because all the various snacks for the family movie nights had fond memories attached to them.

" _All_ of the variations of the movie night snack are my favorites. What matters is that we watched and snacked as a family, together. We made memories," Ziva locked gazes with her husband as she spoke. She could tell his answer was the same or nearly the same as her own. "Our weekly movie nights are some of my favorite memories from when you five were children."

"Ima's got it correct; I really don't have a favorite. The memories of spending time together are what is important," Tony echoed his soulmate's response. He leaned towards his wife whispering in her ear, "And that goes for our movie nights when you and I were getting to know each other as well…"


	10. Challah Disaster

Chapter 10 – Challah Disaster 2023

"I am on the way home," Ziva replied to her husband's 'hello' on the phone. "Did you remember to make the Challah so that we can bake it when I get home?"

Tony was glad Ziva couldn't see his face, "Yep." He knew if she could see him, she would know he lied. Crap, he'd forgotten to make the dough and let it rise, shape the loaves, and have them ready to slip in the oven when Ziva called. The good thing was that she was planning to make a stop on the way home; he still had time to recover and get the bread ready.

"Good, I will see you in about ninety minutes." Ziva ended the call.

Tony rushed to the kitchen; Ziva left all the ingredients except the eggs on the counter next to the stand mixer. He'd read somewhere that the sugar is what made the yeast ferment, so he figured if he added a bit extra yeast and a bit extra sugar, the dough would rise faster. He mixed the ingredients and set the dough in a greased bowl to rise, covering it with a towel.

By the time he'd washed the mixer bowl, the dough hook and the measuring cups and spoons, the dough was pushing the towel upward. His plan had worked; the dough had taken less than half the normal time to rise! He glanced at the clock on the microwave; about thirty minutes until Ziva would be home.

He punched down the dough and divided it into six pieces to makes the ropes for braiding into loaves. Quick work produced two Challah loaves on the baking sheets, which he then covered with towels to let rise again. When Ziva walked in from the garage twenty-three minutes later, the loaves had risen to a nice size for baking. Score one for the save, Tony noted to self, as he pre-heated the oven. He brushed egg over the tops of the loaves.

The oven beeped to indicate it was at the desired preset temperature; Tony slid the two baking sheets into the oven. The loaves were larger than normal, but he was pleased he had been able to get the task done successfully. Ziva looked at the pans as he carried them to the oven.

"Nice work, how did you get them so big?"

Tony grinned, "DiNozzo secret. I aim to please! In forty minutes, plus cooling time, be prepared to have your mouth taste the best Challah ever." He set the timer for twenty minutes so he could apply the second egg wash to the braids.

Ziva placed the chicken and vegetable casserole in the convection oven to reheat the main course for the meal. The kids drifted into the kitchen with the smell of food. The twins set the table for the meal while LJ watched Tali carry beverages to each place. The oven timer beeped.

Tony opened the oven; the two loaves were nearly touching the top of the oven and the bottom of the upper rack, respectively. He carefully eased them out and brushed the tops with the remaining egg wash. Ziva raised an eyebrow at the size of the loaves but said nothing. She suspected that her husband had tried to speed up the yeast. Tony set the timer for another twenty minutes. Ziva stirred the casserole as the family waited for the food to finish cooking and heating.

The oven timer beeped; Tony opened the door to two huge loaves of Challah. He had to remove them carefully and then set the bread on cooling racks while the casserole finished reheating.

Ziva looked over at the bread; out of curiosity she tapped the tops. A hollow thud told her the bread was baked thoroughly. She wondered what Tony had done to make them rise so high. The convection oven beeped that the time was done for heating the main dish. Ziva removed it from the oven and set the dish on the hot pad on the table.

"Go wash your hands, please, while Abba slices the bread," she directed the children.

"Okay Ima," they chorused.

Tony walked back into the kitchen to slice the Challah. His face fell as he spied his creations. Each loaf had collapsed in the center while cooling; they pretty much looked like a drainage trench now. Ziva followed Tony and nearly laughed out loud at the expression on his face.

"I hope it's still edible," he whispered as he pulled the bread knife from the block. He sliced into a collapsed loaf, what bread there was seemed to be baked and when he tasted it, it tasted like Challah. "I think I can salvage it," he looked at Ziva sheepishly.

"What did you do?" she locked gazes with him.

"I… I… um… sorta forgot… and I used extra yeast and sugar to make it rise faster," he blurted out the details and waited for the stinging comment from his better half.

Ziva smirked, "I would bet my pay that you will not do _that_ again."

"Nope…. I guess I'll have to explain it to the kids, huh?"

"This is _all_ on you, my little hairy butt," she laughed as she returned to the dining room where the kids were anticipating their dinner.


	11. Eat All You Want

Chapter 11 – Eat All You Want 2031

The extended family gathered at the steakhouse buffet for Anthony's fourteenth birthday; Ziva had reserved a separate room for the group of twenty-two people. The teen chose the steakhouse for his birthday dinner; afterwards, the family planned to go to the indoor neon miniature golf at the nearby mall.

"Remember that you can eat all you want," Ziva reminded the group.

John and Anthony exchanged looks; they grinned at each other as the family headed out to fill plates at the buffet. LJ and Charles high-fived; the challenge was on to see which of the four boys could eat the most.

Katie and Tali rolled their eyes at the antics of their siblings and cousins.

"I'm betting on Anthony," Katie noted to the other girls. "John can pack away the food, but I think Anthony still can out-eat anyone here."

Beth nodded, "I wouldn't bet against my brother. John, LJ, and Charles will put up a good fight, but Anthony will win any food contest hands down."

Tim nudged Tony and Jimmy, "Think we can out-eat the boys?"

"I'm gonna give it my best," Tony grinned at his brothers of the heart.

Jimmy nodded, "Ditto. But I have to tell you that I'd place my money on Anthony any day."

"That's my boy!" Tony snickered as Ziva rolled her eyes to the other women.

Ziva patted her husband's belly, "Someone's eyes are as big as his belly." The others all laughed as Tony pretended to be offended by her remark. "And it shows…"

"Hey!" he put on a puppy-eyes face and batted his eyes at his wife. "Someone's cooking contributes too…"

"You are not a growing boy anymore; the _only_ way you can grow is wider," Ziva smirked at him as she grabbed a plate to fill. "It would do you good to remember that."

Delilah patted Tim's stomach, "You should listen to Ziva as well, dear."

"Geesh, these women take all the fun out of eating," Tim whispered to Tony as the two grabbed plates from the pile. "So what if we indulge once in a while?"

Tony nodded and replied, "Let's show these _boys_ how real men eat!"

"Right, Abba," Anthony walked past his parents with two plates piled high with all sorts of food; he had meats on one plate, and vegetables and other sides on the second plate. "I'm just getting started!"

"What _he_ said," John grinned at his father and uncle as he passed by with two plates similar to what Anthony had. "LJ's plates are piled high like ours, too. Charles has two plates of salads to start…"

Not to be outdone, Tony, Tim, and Jimmy all returned to the table with two plates each, also piled high like the boys' plates. Delilah, Breena, Ziva, the girls, and Gibbs just shook their heads. Abby, Leon, Clay, and Ellie declared that they were staying out of the food battle and just going to enjoy their meals. Savannah and Jason watched the older boys as they ate.

An hour later, Tony and Tim were loosening their belts while John and Anthony were still eating. LJ and the others had given up trying to out-eat the teens. Anthony had a plate full of cakes and cookies plus a bowl of ice cream with all sorts of toppings; John had a bowl of peach cobbler with vanilla ice cream on top and three cookies on a plate. The two had kept tally of the number of plates of food they brought back to the table. Both were at fifteen plates of food. John finished his peach cobbler as Anthony got up to get one more plate of food.

The teen returned with a plate of assorted fruit, some vanilla pudding, and a small bowl of chocolate candies. John looked at his cousin and groaned.

"You win," he exclaimed. "I don't think I can eat another bite!"

Anthony grinned and gave a thumbs' up as he devoured the fruit. He sat back with a sigh as he finished the candies and gave his best DiNozzo grin to the entire family. Tony put his arm around the young man's shoulders.

"Honestly, did you see the food bar as a personal challenge?" the father asked the son.

"Yep!"

"That's my boy; DiNozzo food gene strikes again!"


End file.
